ROBESON COUNTY, N.C.
acquisitio^js department
'nt
PUBLISHED EACH THURSDAY
UNC
WILSON Lir
• A GOOD PLACE TO LIVH
THE CAROLINA
Dedicated to the best in all of us
VOICE
Loj ll|i**********»!i**%l|«*************!le**********)|e**********J|t***!|!**!|*****s(:****=|ss|‘'1***s|==|t!(c:|«***!|c*********!|e****!its|e***H!*******s|e*j|tj|e**5(.5|e,|t^c,|j
$ VOLUME 5 NUMBER 2 PEMBROKE, N. C. THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 1977 150 PER COPY *
♦♦♦♦♦*»)|iiH***!te*H'**»**»=K#**************************************!|!**s|«*******!lt!|t**!|5*H‘*****>t's|t»******************!(c*5|ts|t**s|e**!|ts|j!ij,|c:|.:|t:|c*
'Miss Lumbee,'
Undo Locklear, overcomes
Tragedy of Youth
To Represent People In ‘Miss N.C. Pageant’
BOARD OF EDUCATiON
KEEPS BIGGS AND VOTES
"NO" ON INDIAN
AHORNEY
Rl
by Connee Brayboy
The Robeson County Board of
Education met in one of its shorter
sessions on Tuesday, Jan. U, 1977.
Board members had received in the
mail a proposal from the chairman, Mr.
Ralph Hunt. The proposal was concer
ning the possibility of shortening the
board meetings. Some discussion was
had on this proposal although no action
was taken.
The board heard a report on testing in
the schools from Mrs. Gladys Britt,
coordinator of instructional services,
assisted by Mrs. Jessie Byrd/whois in
“"charge of testing. The report was at the
request of the board at the November
meeting. The reports on all the testing
in the schools are to be given in a series.
The first one was given on the tests'
which are given to the children entering
^ifirst grade.
Once again the Board was faced with
■^he matter of the school board attorney.
aeotThis time they were forced to make a
decision. Harbert Moore moved that
oeathey, in essence, relieve present
attorney, I. Murchison Biggs, of his
' duties and retain the law firm of
Locklear and Brooks of Pembroke. The
motion was seconded by Rev. Bob
Mangum. During the discussion period,
only one member had any discussion.
That member was Mr. David Green,
member from Parkton. He stated his
desire to make the decision according to
V fthe democratic process. Said he, “If the
present attorney is not doing his job, we
owe it to the public to let them
know...My concern is that this board
always do things according to the
democratic process.” He expressed his
belief that if the present attorney had a
! contract, they should uphold that
contract until the contract expired. He
spoke with much feeling about the
board conducting their busines.s with
dignity and grace. After this, Mr. Biggs
spoke. He said, in essence, he felt that
the board should either relieve him as
^^their counsel or retain his firm for an
^^ertended period of time. He wp not
'^concerned will? waiting until the
expiration of his contract. He, it seemed
to me, issued the board an ultimatum.
He pleaded for them to settle the matter
at that meeting and be done of it. Then
the vote was taken. Voting for the
motion were; Harbert Moore and Rev.
Bob Mangum. Voting against were:
Tommy D. Swett, David Green, Shirley
Britt. Simeon Oxendine. Lillian Faye
Locklear and Laymon P. Locklear did
not vote, although they did not abstain
from voting.
The attorney read a ruling from the
attorney general’s office concerning the
release of SAT scores to the press and to
individual board members. Much dis
cussion followed. Tommy D. Swett, in
an effort to stress a point about the
release of scores without releasing a
plan to improve the scores of minority
students compared the release of
scores to the press to the release of a
body x-ray to the public. His point being
that it would be like releasing the tool
used by a doctor to make a diagnosis
rather than releasing the diagnosis. To
which the chairman answered, “...that
is not the issue. The issue is we have
a monkey. Now what are we going to do
with it?” To which Swett replied, “I just
don’t want us to throw him into the
street.”
According to the attorney general’s
reply, the SAT scores should be
released. Because the old board had
made a motion to keep the superinten
dent from releasing the SAT scores,
which have been compiled, a motion
was necessary to release him from that
request. Such a motion was made by
Laymon P. Locklear. The motion
carried. Next came a motion from Rev.
Bob Mangum that the
SAT scores be released to the Board at
the conclusion of the reports on the
other testing that had begun at the
meeting.
In other matters, Carlton Dial had the
high bid for the rental of the property
which was bought for the new Pem-
brokf- Elementary School.
EDUCATION FOR HANDICAPPED
INDIAN CHILDREN: A new Federal
law requires school systems to have
appropriate programs to meet the needs
of handicapped children. BIA sponsored
a November meeting in Albuquerque to
initiate plans for implementing the Act
and helping Indian handicapped child
ren. Participants from around the
country included parents of handicap
ped children, IHS representatives and
BIA school, social service and adminis
trative officials.
people ^
and places
and things
Lumbee River Electric
Lambasted For
Skyrocketing Light Bills
:s
I. Murchison Biggs Retained
Commenrs On Doord
Of Education Decision
“I support affirmative action all the
■pU'ay...My only opposition is the method
jMn which we do things...If we have a
flvacancy I am in favor of filling it with a
^Vmuiority...My opposition was based on
l^he way we did it...”
•David Green, Board Member, The
Robeson County Board of Education.
lOft “1 thought it was the right thing to do.
""^at’s about all 1 can say about it.”
•L. Haribert Moore, Board Member, The
Robeson County Board of Education.
j| “Hey, I didn’t vote. I am in favor of
jiiring an Indian attorney at the
appropriate time...”
ilayinoB Poe Locklear, Board Member,
pobeson County Board of Education.
iC
“The whole intent of those who
'bought to break double voting in the
.^^urts was to bring about Indian self
^*letermination. The board’s action Tues-
N lay night leaves the appearance that
>ome members do not believe that we
:an be masters of our own fate...I am
otally shockedl”
Jattle Maynor Locklear, Plaintiff, Break
^fjn:5ouble Vote Law Suit.
“It should have been left alone until the
rime came to deal with it...The action
was premature. I feel we should honor
his (I. Murchison Biggs) employment
like we honor everyone else’s who was
there before we took office....Also feel
the board should have an opportunity to
consider others instead of having only
one choice. When we're speaking of
fairness and equal opportunity, especi
ally equal opportunity, we should
consider that some of the board
members don’t even know the firmr
they were supposed to vote on- We
should have a choice.”
-Tommy D. Swett, Member Robeson
County Board of Mucation.
LINDA LOCKLEAS...AS “Miss Lum-
bee,” she will proudly represent her
By Gene Warren
Pembroke- When the reigning “Miss
Lumbee”"Linda Gail Locklear- a
beautiful 21-year-old Indian girl, was
nine years old, both of her parents were
killed along with seven others in a
pickup-train collision between Maxton
and Red Springs.
They were en route to a ball game.
Only one person survived the accident,
one of the most tragic in Robeson
County history. Linda’s mother, Viola,
was 27 years old; her father, Howard,
was 32.
Among the others were Linda’s great
uncle and great aunt.'Most of the others
were relatives. Luckily for Linda,
neither she nor her three sisters or
brothers were in the pickup truck.
Linda’s uncle and aunt, Mr. and Mrs.
Andrew Chavis of Route 3, Maxton,
took the tremendous responsibility of
raising these children along with their
own son. He is a building contractor and
farmer. They raised in Linda a girl who
will bid for “Miss North Carolina”
when that pageant is held in June at
Winston-Salem.
The trauma of the accident now long
past, Linda can talk about what
happened. “It occurred only six miles
from our home,” she reflected. She is
indebted to her aunt and uncle who
raised her like their own and have sent
her through four years of college at
Pembroke State University. She gradu
ates this year with a double major in
political science and journalism.
As “Miss Lumbee,” an honor which
she won in a field of 12 contestants last
July 1 during the annual Lumbee
•Indian people In the “Miss North
Carolina” contest.
Homecoming, Linda feels she has a
unique honor in representing the
Indians of Robeson County. “My title
represents an' ethnic group. I am
seeking to bring as much attention to
our Lumbee Indians as possible,” she
says proudly.
As queen she has already attended 26
pageants througlK'.ii: North Carolina,
several of which “Miss America” also
attended. She drives a ’76 Mustang,
which is provided her for winning
“Miss Lumbee.” Other gifts include a
luggage set and a wardrobe for the
“Miss North Carolina” contest.
Even now she works part-time after
shcool in the library of the Lumbee
Regional Development Association at
Pembroke.
Following graduation from PSU, she
hopes to go either to law school at
UNC-Chapel Hill or to journalism school
at East Carolina University. “My big
interest is civil rights,” says Linda. “I’d
like to work for the government in some
phase of Indian affairs, perhaps for the
Bureau of Indian Affairs.”
Although her home is only 15 miles
from Pembroke, Linda has lived on
campus at PSU all four years. “I love
Pembroke State. If I hadn’t lived on
campus, I wouldn’t have gotten to know
so many people from all areas of the
state.” she explains. “In this way, I
have met people from many different
social -backgrounds.”
At PSU Linda has thrived. She was
captain of the cheerleaders in ’75,
second runner-up to “Miss PSU” in
’74, a member of the homecoming court
in ’75--and has been “Little Sister” for
Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity, a member
More than 700 consumers spilled out
of the O.P. Owens Auditorium last
Thursday night as irate customers
(many with light bills in hand) and
representatives from the Lumbee River
Electric Membership Corp. met to air
gripes and attempt to explain skyroc
keting light bills.
The meeting was arranged by a
committee, mostly from Clybom Pines,
that has been formed to fight light bills
that have skyrocketed almost out of the
range of the people’s ability and means
to pay.
Richmond Page, an attorney has been
hired by the committee to press their
grievances. Page chaired the meeting
and attempted to keep it orderly.
Repeatedly, the crowd was frustrated
by the directive from Page that was “let
the committee ask the questions.”
Many of the irate customers had
questions of their own and were hardly
in a mood to let a committee (mostly
unrepresentative from Clybom Pines)
ask the questions that they wished to
ask themselves.
One Indian lady spoke fervently of the
anti-christ aspects of the gathering and
asked in exasperation, “I just want to
know one thing; can you or can you not
tell us whether we are going to have to
pay outrageous light bills like this in the
future?”
The coop officials could not answer
her. They blamed Carolina Power &
Light Co., and the oil embargo and the
economy as the culprits in the matter.
They talked about the rising costs of
electricity nationwide. They talked
about the added costs of electricity
caused by environmental groups.
But the consumers remained frustrat
ed and angry. The slightly unruly crowd
pressed forward on occasion, complete
ly encircling the coop officials in their
midsts. The more the coop officials
explained the more angry the consum
ers became because the answers given
were unsatisfactory in the main.
A lawyer who represents coops
statewide catalogued the woes of rural
coops, noting that the federal power
commission and the state utilities
commissions had allowed CP & L two
inflationary rate increases, one of 168%
in 1975 and another of 75% in 1976.
Lumbee River Electric Membership
Corp., like most coops, buys its
electricity from major companies like
Carolina Power & Light Company and
have, as they rationalize, passed the
increased costs on to the consumers.
A lawyer present explained that CP &
The coop lawyer stated, “the only hope
in the future is the change of
administration in Washington. Maybe
they can encourage the Federal Power
Commission to be more concerned with
the plight of the consumer than the big
power companies like CP & L.”
The other hope mentioned was that
possibly coops across the state could
band together and buy their own
generating facilities and save the costs
of adding wholesale rate adjustments on
to the consumers bill.”
Judge Early Bullard
Succumbs After
Extended Illness
of KappaDeita Sorority and a member of L was selling electricty to coops on a
“Why is it that Indians and Blacks
lannot look after their own? Is there an
inwritten law that Indians and Blacks
ire on self destruct?”
^Ul-WIshes to remain anonymous.
“...Only Fitting to let a man (Biggs)
serve out his contract.”
•Simeon Oxendine, Board Member,
\ Robeson County Board of Education.
^ “Where were the boys?”
■Curt Locklear, former candidate for the
jjj^obesdn County Board of Education
^jnd Owner of Pembroke Hardware.
Early Bullard, 88, died Sunday at
Scotland Memorial Hospital following
an extended illness. He was the first
Indian to ever serve as judge. He served
as judge in the Maxton Recorder’s
Court from 1954-1958. He was a retired
farmer from the Prospect Community
and a Pembroke Businessman. For
many years he owned and operated the
Pembroke Farmer’s Exchange. He was
a former trustee of the Cherokee Indian
Normal School which is now Pembroke
State University.
Funeral services were held Wednes
day, Jan. 12, 1977 at Prospect United
Methodist Church. Rev. Harvey Lowry
officiated. Burial followed in the
cemetery.
He is survived by one son, Clement
Bullard of the Prospect Community, two
brothers, Rev. Johnnie Bullard and
Lessie Bullard, and a host of other
relatives and friends.
Mr. Early Bullard •
the American Indian Student organiza
tion.
She is also cover girl for this year’s
PSU basketball and wrestling brochure.
A ’73 graduate of Prospect High
School near Pembroke, Linda won all
kinds of honors there: “Who’s Who
in American High Schools,” National
Honor Society, Beta Club, History
Award, Civic Award, and a member of
the Spanish Club and Gym Club.
Her hobbies ae dancing, painting,
gymnastics, swimming and reading.
Her talent in winning the “Miss
Lumbee” contest was gymnastics and
contemporary modem dancing. She will
use classical dancing as her talent in the
“Miss North Carolina” contest.
Linda stays busy as “Miss Lumbee.”
On Jan. 29, she will be at Denton along
with “Miss North Carolina” and 25
other queens helping to raise funds for
the March of Dimes. Her chaperone for
all of these events is Mrs. Florence
Ransom of Pembroke.
What is Linda’s goal? “To win the
Miss North Carolina contest,” she
replies with a coquettish smile.
Who’s to say this girl, who has
flowered in every way despite the
tragedy of her childhood, won’t achieve
that goal?
fixed contract in the 60s and early 70s
and, accordingto them, they lost money
when the economy was hit by inflation
and the oil embargo. As soon as they
were released from the fixed contract,
they immediately implored the federal
power commission to allow them to
raise prices. And they were allowed to
do so, even though both rate increases
have been challenged by coops nation
ally. The rate increases are in effect
although the matter is still in the courts.
Some consumers present showed light
bills in November with representative
figures showing a November bill of
$76.00 and a December bill of more than
$300.00. The bill seemed to be
Said one irate member at the meeting,
“I sure don’t see much hope there...”
Hinson and other officials attempted to
explain the way the cost of electricity is
figured, saying, in essence, that CP & L
bases their cost on the peak day of the
coop which was July 23, 2976. That is
the factor used by CP & L to figure how
much they will charge coops for
electricty. The problem, no matter how
much CP & L charges, is that the cost is
tacked on to the light bills of the
consumers.
Hinson also raised the hackles of the
audience, when in response to a
question from the committee, he stated
that his salary is $34,000 a year and the
use of an automobile-and-othw benefits.
Many in the audience hooted in
derision.
CECIL DUNN REVIVES BAD
MEMORY FOR ir«)UNS & BLACKS
Many Indians and Blacks questioned
Cecil Dunn emerging as a spokesman
for the committee from Oyborn Pines.
He was president of the coop when Rev.
Elias Rogers sued the Lumbee River
Coop and collected damages for tam
pering with proxie ballots and refusing
to seat him on the board in the late 60s.
Until Rogers won his law suit, no Indian
or Black had ever served on the coop
board.
A number of the present board
members were present at the meeting
and sat quietly as Dunn and others
lambasted them. They were irate after
the meeting. A member of the board, a
White, remembered Dunn saying, in
times past, that he would never allow an
Indian or Black to serve on the coop
board if he had anything to do with it.
A number of the board members also
remembered that many of the projects
undertaken by the coop were initiated
under Dunn’s leadership.
Dunn, among other things, was
accused in Roger’s law suit, of
tampering with proxy votes and actually
having them flushed down a toilet. ■
Many also thought that the unrepre
sentative Clybom Pines Committee was
attempting to abrogate the duties of the
board of directors and, without reason,
tar them with an unseemly brush.
Dunn was challenged by an Indian
after the meeting. Said the Indian,
“Dunn, you ought to be ashamed of
yourself,” and catalogued his litany of
complaints.
Hinson asked the committee to come
and talk to him at his office in a more
conductive setting. One consumer, from
the floor, questioned the right of the
committee to represent him. The
consumer, the voice, hardly audible in
representative and reflective of most of the anger of the high light bills,
shouted, “We elected the board of
directors to represent us. They ought to
be given an opportunity to address our
grievances.”
the 16,000 consumers who own Lumbee
River Electric Membership Corp.
There did not seem to be any Indians
or Blacks on the Clybom Pines
Committee, although this reporter was
told after the meeting that four Indians
had been added to the committee.
But Dunn and the Clybom Pines
Committee drew wild applause.
REP. HORACE LOCKLEAR
HOPES FOR PEMBROKE
COURTHOUSE
Rep. Horace Locklear has express
ed that one of his goals for his first year
in office as the 21st Congressional
District’s newest legislator is to obtain
for Pembroke a district courthouse.
“Studies have shown that the case load
will support such a move,’’ said
Locklear.
Apart from this, Locklear said that he
is hoping to spend his first year learning
about the House as thoroughly as
possible.
PSU BRACE FACE
CAMPBELL TONIGHT
PSU’s Braves, who are on a three
game winning streak and 6-4 for the
young season, face the fierce challenge
of playing their first NAIA District 29
contest at Campbell (8-3) tonight at 8
p.m. A preliminary contest between the
girls’ teams of the two schools is set for
6 p.m.
Last season Campbell best PSU
decisively three times, 72-63 in the
finals on the Campbell Tip-Off Tourna
ment, 94-73 at Campbell and 82-67 at
Pembroke.
But after PSU defeated Catawba’s
leaders of the Carolinas Conference
83-76 Monday, Coach Joe Gallagher
enthused: “We have beaten the two
best teams in the conference (Guilford
and Catawba). I think we are capable of
beating anyone.” His task and that of
the Braves will be tough tonight.
PSU’S TOM GARDNER
FOURTH IN DISTRICT 29 SCORING
Raymond Epps, Norfolk State’s 6-foot
6 center-forward from Richmond, is the
scoring leader of NAIA District 29 in the
first release of averages. The pre-
season small college All- American
selection is averaging 25.4 points , per
game.
Second is Mark Chafin of Liberty
Baptistwitha24.1 average. Completing
the first five are Liberty Baptist’s
William DeShazor with 22.1, Pembroke
State’s Tom Gardner with 20.4 and
Hampton Institute’s Marvin Payne with
20.3.
Payne is the No. 1 rebounder with
13.7 recoveries per contest, followed by
Campbell’s Sam Staggers with 13.0.
In field goal percentage the leader is
Atlantic Christian’s Tom Umberger
with a 65.2 mark. Next is Virginia
State’s Victor Jones with a 64.1
percentage.
The free throw shooting leader is
LibertyBaptist’s Karl Hess with a 91.6
percentage. Next is Pembroke State’s
Gardner with 82.3.
division of the Attorney General’s office
was at the meeting as an observer, as
was Sam Noble, chairman of the county
commissioners.
The consumers came to the meeting
angry and frustrated and most left the
same way. Even the answers that might
have been considered plausible in
calmer times were shouted down with
hoots of “Hey, we can’t understand all
this legal talk. Why don’t you break it
down so we can understand it?’’
The consumers milled around after the
meeting, still frustrated and angry.
Their complaints were not answered to
their satisfaction and. as one Indian put
it “We come to a meeting like this
concerned and sincere and here Cecil
Dunn jumps out a trying to use us for
the wrong reason. God help the poor
little fellow like me.”
Another said, ‘ T want something done
about my light bill but, at the same time
I don’t want nobody like Cecil Dunn a
trying to use my anger and frustration
to jump up on a soap box and try to
make a come back. Watch my words. I'll
bet you a dollar against a donut that he
Hinson encouraged the irate consum-
Deryl Hinson, general manager of ers to come to his office, and if
Lumbee River Electric, avowed, at necessary to discuss payment sche-
Thursday night’s meeting that “I am dules. Although manyseemingly will be runs in the next ^election,
probably the most hated man in the forced to take him up on his offer, many
hooted and hollared from the audience,
including one customer who said,
“Yeah, that's what they want us to do,
then the next bill will be twice as
much.”
county.” Many in the audience shouted
back forcefully, “You said that right!”
WHAT IS THE HOPE FOR
THE CONSUMER?
What is the hope for the consumer? Jerry Fruitt, from the consumer’s
The committee promised more meet
ings and, after the meeting, one of them
said that they were circulating a petition
to withdraw the present board of
directors, fire Hinson, and restructure
the coop at a special called membership
meeting some time in the future.